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Questions and answers from ASHE members

Members address issues on patient transport, drinking fountains and condensation in patient rooms

August 6, 2018

The My ASHE Messenger column contains excerpts of topics from My ASHE, the member-only community for the American Society for Health Care Engineering. To join the discussion, visit my.ashe.org.

Q:We recently had a few patient bed wheels turn sideways and get stuck in the gap between the landing and the elevator car. Gaps are within code tolerances. We are proposing increased education for transporters to follow a straight-in, straight-out approach. Just wondering if others have experienced similar problems and, if so, are there any other solutions?

We had a similar issue recently. When I reviewed the CCTV footage, I determined that the staff person started to exit the car and, for whatever reason, decided to go back into the elevator car, which caused the swivel wheels to turn and drop into the space between the landing and the elevator car. Our educational approach was to use the straight-in and straight-out method with no stopping, if possible.

Q: Can anyone tell me if hospitals need to have drinking fountains? We have a couple that need repair and several that are never used. Working with our Legionella plan, I would like to remove them altogether, if possible.

Check with your state and local officials and building code. Some states have requirements based on occupancy type and number of people in the facility.

Q:One of our facilities is having problems with condensation forming inside headwall units and bed positioners that are in exterior walls in patient rooms. Has anyone experienced this or have comments on what may be causing it? We have checked and there is no moisture present inside or above the walls where the headwall units are located.

It sounds like it could be a dew-point issue. Do you have access to a thermal camera? If so, scan the exterior wall during a large temperature differential to see any warmer areas. This might tell you where a noncontinuous vapor barrier/insulation system could be allowing humidity inside and then condensing.

Join the Q&A ONLINE! ASHE members can go to my.ashe.org to ask or answer questions from colleagues. If we choose your question or answer for this column, we’ll send you some ASHE swag as a token of our appreciation for contributing to the My ASHE online community.

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